Hello all,
I know there was a post (I think it started with a toilet) about dream houses for RA. We live in large (about 3000 sq ft) home with 5 bedrooms, 2 family rooms, an office etc. It has a large yard on top of that. The bedrooms and full baths are upstairs and so is the laundry room. This was a great house when we had 6 kids at home and no RA
Now we are down to a 15 year old, my husband and I and no pets. We found a lot on a slope we like with a view of the Columbia river. So far all we have come up with is a rambler with zero clearance entrances, no hallways and hard surface floors. We will probably have a half walk out basement on the bottom for a recreation room and NO YARD. We will have a large deck for the view. Besides the TOILET that was mentioned before (yes, I want one) any other ideas what has worked for you with RA? I am thinking long term. I can walk, but am unsteady and the stairs kill me.
thanks!
Mary B
Wide door ways. You never know what you're going to need to haul in and out of a room. Older houses tend to have skinnier doors, and it can pose a problem when you're trying to set up that very special king sized bed that you so desperately need for your back!
That's all I got for now...I'll post more when I think of it!! :)
Like Hurts mentioned before, Lever handled door knobs. I have 2, one on the kitchen door and one on the bathroom door. Eventually when we come up with more money, all the doors will be converted to lever handles.
A shower with a built in seat is great. I have one and love to be able to soak in the shower for longer then my body will allow.
Front loader washer and dryer. My DREAM of all dreams is to have those. Oh and just after that dream is a dishwasher
Lever handled water spouts. I have them on all the faucets, much easier for me to turn on the water with compared to the round knobs to grip and turn with much effort.
I have more... but it is time for dinner
Hi Mary B., I don't blame you for wanting a smaller house. We sold our home several years ago and it was a great decision. If I were going to build there are several must haves: a walk in bath tub. Cabinet tops that are a few inches higer and sinks that are a few inches higher. I don't want to have to stretch or bend over too far. A sitting area with a counter in the kitchen to prepare fruits and vegetables. A little chopping area. No steps anywhere, with smooth, non slick floors. A high rise toilet. A room just for myself. Good luck.
Thanks all! We will be building it so we can design it. On my list now.Just a note on the washer & dryer: I got front-loading on both with risers, which are drawers under them. It raises them both up so I don't have to bend at all to put things in and take them out. The drawers are really useful, too, for paper products or cleaning supplies.
Also a folding table at a height that keeps you standing up instead of bending over at all.
And our fridge has "french doors" on the top and a pull out freezer below. Also has a large "platter" drawer. I love the freezer on the bottom. You don't get into it that often. When our side by side croaked, we got this one.
I agree with the suggestion of no stairs anywhere. I never thought I would need a scooter or wheelchair, but I do, and I'm so glad we kept this house. In 1989 we bought a house about the size of the one you are in, but kept the 3-bedroom ranch, single level. I am sooo glad we did. I can't climb stairs at all now.
Good luck, I hope you have a great time designing it to your needs.
Gentle hugs,
Nini
LIndy - I really love that as well. I don't have a bath in my flat, only a shower, and I really miss it. Sometimes I have a nice hot ath when I go to my son's place, but it's not the same as "out of the bath and into bed"!!closets with pull down racks
laundry room (with those elevated front loaders) that connects with the closet/dressing room
pull out shelves in the kitchen or preferably drawers instead of cabinets on the floor level.
keyless door locks
computer controlled lighting/heating/cooling
hardwood floors with radiant heating
bidet and of course the raised toilet seats
higher sinks with extended faucets
motion automated faucets
heated towel racks-nothing like arm towels after a shower
hot tub and sauna
gas fire place
automated window coverings and easy open windows
Oh oh!!! They make remote controlled ceiling fans now! Those would be GREAT.I want your list Buckeye sounds perfect. I had a "Comfort Bath" walk-in tub installed a little over a year ago and it was the best money I have ever spent. Here is the Link"
http://www.comfortbath.net/walkintubs.shtml
Naturally I like this one cause I chose it. I saw the ad in Arthritis Today when I started looking. Also, my RD wrote me a prescription and I was able to get a big tax deduction.
We are having a stair climber installed next. We really love where we live and my husband is being very stubborn about moving. He would rather stay where we are and install the climbers than move. I am tired of fighting this particular battle so I guess I will have to live with the ugly things.
He is really good about most everything that we have had to change in our lives since RA, so I guess it is my turn to give in.
Okay, here's my list:
First I would want this in my bathroom:
Second - I would try out all faucets for the kitchen and baths to make sure they were comfortable and easy to use.
Central Vacuum so I wouldn't have to drag around a heavy vacuum cleaner.
Pull out refrigerated drawers for the kitchen. They pull out similar to a trash compactor, and would be very convenient for someone in a wheelchair, should that ever be an issue.
Remote controlled blinds as someone has already said, but I would want the kind that is sandwiched in between the panes of glass, so they would be easy to keep clean.
My husband lived overseas before we were married and said he had a marble kitchen floor with a drain in the middle of it, making mopping of the floor very easy. Sounds interesting to me, but I might not want a drain in the middle of my floor? Maybe it could be off in a corner, and the floor slope ever so slightly in that direction.
Heated towel bars in the bathroom, which could be turned on when you were getting into the shower, so the towels would be nice and warm when you got out.
Good luck and have fun designing! I'm jealous!
Karen
I'm soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo jealous........I want it all. I forgot the slide out kitchen drawers and cabinets and the towel warmer. Wow, you all are wonderful!!!! I have so many great ideas now! I was just thinking about the heated towel rack and floors as I was getting out of the shower. I could spend a lot of money on granite counters and fancy floors but I want comfort. I love all the ideas![QUOTE=arriscolwell]Oh oh!!! They make remote controlled ceiling fans now! Those would be GREAT. [/QUOTE]
We had a remote control ceiling fan... keyword HAD... a week after hubby installed it... we had a T-storm and it zapped our remote control ceiling fan. Man, it was so much easier turning the lights off and on with a remote. Book me in to that B & B Mary
Do you need a room mate? I don't make much noise!!! Your house is going to be fabulous!!!! The one thing I have that I really like is a pull down spice rack. We have a tiny bathroom and I would SOOO love a nice big jetted tube, I DREAM about have a jetted tube!!! Whenever we travel, which isn't often, I always make sure the room has a tube, some people think its a really strange request but I love taking baths and just can't in our tube we have, its way too little!
You are welcome anytime Michele. I have gone to several website finding the pull down or out shelves and can't believe I didn't think of them before. It looks like most can be installed in regular cupboards.
We had thought about putting a jacuzzi in our back yard of the house we have now. But it is agony to get out of it into the cold air. I will certainly have a jetted tub in my bathroom.
I have to make sure that are decks are covered because 1. sensitivity with all the meds. 2. I am a redhead with freckles who grew up on the beach without sunscreen. 3. My mom has had melanoma several times.
We want a walk out basement for kids and future grandkids. I was thinking of having a fireman's pole installed. Of course I don't know how I would get back up
Well you could always use the pole for doing a striptease routine for for your hubby!True! I keep getting this thread confused with the sex thread
Well there you go - maybe you could design a "sex room" with a variety of supportive pillows, beds, chairs, etc. that would assist handicap folks in having sex. Then your RA Bed and Breakfast would be sure to be a HUGE hit!I think we found a house! We won't have to stress building one. It is the model home for a new riverfront community.
It is a 2 story but the master is on the main. There is a jetted tub, walk in shower,
zero clearance entrance and the laundry room is on the main. The
counters in the bathroom and kitchen are high and at a great level to
work at. All hardwood floors on the main. There is a cozy fireplace
in the living room to put my feet up. My husband will have a study
upstairs, but it is a loft and I can call up to him from downstairs.
There is a family room and more bedrooms upstairs, even a guest suite with its own bathroom in the suite. It has central vac too.
The best thing is that it is a townhome. Since it is the model it is beautifully painted and has all the upgrades. It even comes with the side by side refrigerator that someone mentioned. It is beautifully landscaped,
will have a pool, jacuzzi and exercise room. The maintenance of all
that will be taken care of by the association. Yoo Hoo.
There are trails right out our front door to walk along the Columbia river. Even places to put our canoe in! We will have some river views.
I am nervous because it is pricey and we still have to sell our house. It is so nice that I am worried that some of our kids might want to come back
If money were no object, I'd have this:
http://www.shop.com/op/~C100_Elongated_Heated_Washlet_Toilet _Seat_-prod-38620218?xit_cross=1
and this:
http://www.arwholesale.com/index.php?ARCN=50&ARKP=WalkIn Tub
Wow Islandwoman, Those are some nice toilets! I think one of them costs as much as what one of our cars are worth!
Karen
Mary- your new home sounds lovely, may it bring you lots of happiness